Commissioners to hold public hearing on loan

Onslow County commissioners will hold a public hearing in reference to a proposed $9.7 million loan.

By AMANDA HICKEY Daily News Staff

Published: Thursday, August 22, 2013 at 11:30 AM.

Onslow County commissioners will hold a public hearing related to a $9.7 million loan that they say would help fund multiple projects.

The loan would cover $5.5 million for constructing a maintenance building for Coastal Carolina Community College, $3 million for acquiring radios for the county’s five-site simulcast 800 MHz Project 25 trunked radio communications system and $1 million for demolishing the old county jail, with the exception of certain facilities that may be kept for county use. The rest of the loan would be for financing costs, according to county staff.

The county has advertised for financing proposals, which are due by today. The public hearing is scheduled for
7 p.m.
Sept. 4 to consider whether to approve the proposed loan and whether the county would need to acquire property related to the maintenance building portion of the project to secure financing for the construction.

The resolution also calls for a reimbursement resolution for the project, allowing the county to reimburse itself for items such as architectural, engineering and legal costs that they have already paid for.

From there, the proposed financing must be approved by the N.C. Local Government Commission. It is scheduled for consideration by the LGC at its Oct. 1 meeting, provided the board moves forward with the financing.

Ron Lingle, president of CCCC, said that the maintenance building will replace an old metal building that has served as a storage facility for at least 25 years. The facility, he said, has gone from helping the college to being one of the obstacles it must overcome to continue to grow.

Onslow County commissioners will hold a public hearing related to a $9.7 million loan that they say would help fund multiple projects.

The loan would cover $5.5 million for constructing a maintenance building for Coastal Carolina Community College, $3 million for acquiring radios for the county’s five-site simulcast 800 MHz Project 25 trunked radio communications system and $1 million for demolishing the old county jail, with the exception of certain facilities that may be kept for county use. The rest of the loan would be for financing costs, according to county staff.

The county has advertised for financing proposals, which are due by today. The public hearing is scheduled for 7 p.m. Sept. 4 to consider whether to approve the proposed loan and whether the county would need to acquire property related to the maintenance building portion of the project to secure financing for the construction.

The resolution also calls for a reimbursement resolution for the project, allowing the county to reimburse itself for items such as architectural, engineering and legal costs that they have already paid for.

From there, the proposed financing must be approved by the N.C. Local Government Commission. It is scheduled for consideration by the LGC at its Oct. 1 meeting, provided the board moves forward with the financing.

Ron Lingle, president of CCCC, said that the maintenance building will replace an old metal building that has served as a storage facility for at least 25 years. The facility, he said, has gone from helping the college to being one of the obstacles it must overcome to continue to grow.

The new maintenance building would be built on the back of the campus between the college and the golf course of Jacksonville Country Club, Lingle said.

“There was room back there to build a new two-story maintenance building and eventually take down that old metal building, and then eventually the plan is to … turn it into a multi-level parking garage in the center of campus,” he said.

The new 19,335-square-foot, two-story building is expected to cost $5.8 million. It will house buildings and grounds maintenance, a print shop, security, shipping and receiving and the college switchboard. It will also include staff offices and storage space, according to information from the college.

The 800 MHz Project is a $12.8-million project between the City of Jacksonville and OnslowCounty to develop a new public safety radio communication system. The five-site simulcast 800 MHz trunked radio communication system will replace the old analog radio equipment and provide a one-band frequency for fire, rescue, EMS and law enforcement agencies. The county is set to pay about $9 million of the project while the city pays about 30 percent.

Demolition of the former Onslow County Sheriff’s Office and county jail and constructing a continuation of the wall that creates a secure area for transporting inmates to and from the detention center and courthouse is expected to cost about $878,682, according to information from the county.

InterimCounty Manager David Cotton told the commissioners recently that there is about a $236,000 difference in the cost of renovating the old building and the cost of demolishing and replacing it.

Cotton told the commissioners that they expect it take two to four months for design and, once bids are in, three to four months for the demolition construction window.

The initial plan is for the area to be graveled until the commissioners decide what to do with the site in the future, according to Cotton.

CountyFinance Officer Dave McCole told the board Monday night that a tax increase would not be needed to pay for the debt service of these projects. Instead, the county will use its capital reserve fund to pay the debt service of the three projects.

Amanda Hickey is the government reporter at The Daily News. She can be reached at amanda.hickey@jdnews.com.